The continuous demand for faster and higher quality signal transmission has led to connectors, such as those meeting Category 6 specifications, providing low crosstalk and high performance connectivity for electrical cabling. Such high performance demands augment the need to maintain a connection environment devoid of foreign debris that may directly interfere with electrical connections, or may indirectly diminish performance by eroding and degrading connective hardware over time.
To inhibit the passage of foreign matter into or through a connector, some have tried using one or more protective shields disposed variously on or within the connector, particularly in fiber optic applications. Just as damage to an electrical contact or terminal may deteriorate the performance of an electrical connector, concern for the prospect of damage to a fiber end is justified because such damage can degrade the quality of the signal transmitted over the fiber optic connector. U.S. Pat. No. 6,004,043 discloses, for example, a shuttered fiber optic receptacle wherein an inclined planar shutter near the mouth of the receptacle helps protect against contamination while, due to its inclined state, avoiding the reflection of light back into the fiber optic core during mating. U.S. Pat. No. 6,154,597 discloses a fiber optic connector having a pair of doors cooperating to open and close a first receptacle end and a separate door to open and close a second receptacle end. U.S. Pat. No. 6,108,482 discloses a fiber optic connector receptacle having a one-piece shutter with a recessed area for protecting the end of fiber being inserted therein. As fiber ends are commonly pre-polished, such damage may particularly thwart an expensive effort to provide hardware capable of reliable, high-performance communication. Likewise with electrical contacts, especially in high-performance environments, contact with a door or bulkhead has the potential to bend or otherwise deform particular contacts, potentially threatening the ability of the contact to connect properly with a mating piece or potentially diminishing the performance characteristics of the terminal or others around it.
In some prior connectors, the point of full insertion of the plug may be marked by the electrical contacts (or a fiber end) abruptly contacting a bulkhead, stop, or housing back wall that may damage the contact (or fiber end) and thereby degrade performance of the connector. Even an abrupt mating with other electrical contacts may cause undesirable effects. Thus, there is a need for a connector able to deter the passage of foreign debris into the connective environment while simultaneously preventing damage to the connective apparatus, such as extending terminals, throughout the insertion path of the inserted plug.